He has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder in connection to the deaths of Kathryn and Alvin Liknes and one count of second-degree murder in the death of their grandson, Nathan O’Brien, all of whom vanished June 29.

He is expected to appear before court on Wednesday.

With his hands handcuffed behind his back, Garland walked with his head down and showed little emotion as he was surrounded by cameras and reporters during the walk to the police department's arrest processing unit late Monday night.

Flowers and notes are piling up outside the home of Alvin and Kathy Liknes, after police announced pending murder charges in the case of the missing Calgary couple and their five-year-old grandson.

He did not respond to a barrage of questions.

Garland had been taken into custody at 1:30 a.m. Monday and is in the city jail, Calgary Sgt. Thor Bahl told the Star.

“Even as the days went by, there’s always a hope, there’s always a glimmer of hope,” Calgary Police Chief Rick Hanson said at a news conference Monday. “Unfortunately with the laying of the charges, we’ve taken that hope away from the family. So they are devastated.”

While refusing to discuss the evidence in any detail, Hanson said there is no “smoking gun” that finally led to the arrest and the belief that the three are dead.

Investigators met with Crown prosecutors on Sunday to go over evidence that had been gathered over the two weeks, he said. They determined charges were warranted. An Amber Alert issued shortly after the family members were reported missing was also cancelled.

“It was clear at that point that this was no longer a missing-persons investigation. This was a homicide investigation,” Hanson said.

Garland has ties to the Liknes family. His sister is in a relationship with a member of the Liknes family.

Alvin Liknes was involved in several oil and gas companies, including Winter Petroleum Ltd., which media reports say was forced to close a few weeks ago.

Court documents show Garland has a criminal record and mental issues.

In 2000, he was sentenced to 39 months for making amphetamines at his parents’ farm. Before he went to prison, he jumped bail and lived for several years in Vancouver using the identity of a dead person.

The Parole Board of Canada gave him accelerated release after six months, noting in its decision that Garland’s prior criminal record consisted of various property offences over the course of 20 years.

His mental health played a role in the crimes, the board said, but a psychologist determined that Garland had “little violence potential to others.” It ordered a psychologist and psychiatrist to closely monitor him during his release.